you knew mitt romney had to have a good debate. what were you guys thinking as you saw this thing unwind and saw that the president not only didn't bring his "a" game, he just didn't show up, and mitt was on top of his game. what were you thinking? >> as we were watching it, we were thinking we were at the right place at the right time. you think of all the debate preparation. there's a lot of work and staff's very involved. at the end of the day, it's his ball. mitt romney gets on that stage. he's throwing the ball. and the only thing he can control is him, what he does, what he says, what comes out of his mouth. >> doesn't matter how much you prep him, it's up to him. >> and it doesn't matter what the moderator does. it doesn't matter what the president does. the one thing that's in his control is the case he makes. and it's the first time that there was -- you know, you think about the way people portrayed mitt romney over the past few months as though he's some sort of monster. and suddenly we got to see the guy that we know. t